The Best Gift
by Sannikex
Summary: Fluffy Draco/Ginny one-shot for the holidays. Draco and Ginny exchange Christmas gifts for the first time and they both get something better than they had hoped for.


A/N: My contribution to the D/G Forum's Secret Santa - this one's for Desertisle, I hope you like it and Merry Christmas! Nothing but light fluff in this one, school era and only compliant to before OotP. Takes place during Draco's last year at school.

The evening was cold, but the light spilling from the windows of Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft was warm. Outside snow glistened, the ground holding its breath for spring under its thick blanket, all laying still and silent. Ice covered the lake and the Giant Squid slept peacefully below. The Whomping Willow kept its branches still under a thick layer of white and the Forbidden Forest was frost bound and quiet. Icicles hung from the turrets, another layer on the ornate cake it resembled in winter. The sky looked more distant than usual, the stars twinkling high above with benevolent gazes. It was a picture perfect winter's night, two weeks before Christmas Day.

Inside the castle, the fireplaces were lit, sparking and snapping. Students huddled around them, talking and laughing, eagerly awaiting the holidays soon to start. Most could be found in their Common Rooms, some in the Great Hall playing games and a few in the library. But two students were away from the rest, having chosen to come to a room out of the way.

It was the old teachers' lounge, long since abandoned for the one closer to the classrooms now in use. A few desks stood pushed against one wall, some shelves with piles of dusty notes against the other. Around the fireplace stood several deep armchairs, a lot less grimy than the rest of the room. On the floor, just in front of the fire, a girl with red hair, dressed in the school uniform and a Gryffindor tie sat cross legged and focused on the task in front of her.

Behind her, the door opened and a tall boy with blonde hair, his uniform matched with a Slytherin tie, entered. He stopped for a moment just inside the door, a small smile flashing on his features. Then he spoke.

o.O.o

"What in Merlin's name are you doing?"

Draco spoke behind her and Ginny tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she leaned forward over her task.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm wrapping gifts."

"I can see that, my question is _why_ would you?"

He entered her field of vision and she looked up, smiling. He looked both confused and curious, a rarely seen combination on his features. Dressed in his uniform with his tie undone and the first button in his shirt left open, he looked positively disheveled for his normally neat self. The roughed-around-the-edges impression made her heart skip a beat and her breath hitched slightly. He'd always been attractive, even those who didn't like him had to admit it, but once you did like him it was more like a kick in the face than a vague acknowledgement. And, she added to herself with a gleeful little internal victory dance, he was all hers to enjoy. It might just be attraction and like, but why did you have to complicate it more? She liked the way he looked, he liked the way she looked. They had fun together, when he wasn't being insufferable or smug to an intolerable degree. That was all she needed right now.

"It's customary to wrap presents at this time of year to obscure to the receiver what they are and so prolong the excitement for receiving them. The presents are colloquially known as 'Christmas Gifts'."

He flopped down on the armchair across from her, raising one eyebrow, his amusement at her sarcasm half-heartedly concealed.

"I am asking you why you're not wrapping them with magic. You are a witch, yes? This is a menial task and you could have it done in a fraction of the time with one simple spell."

"I like wrapping them myself."

"You like it?"

"It shows you...care. You took the time, not only to choose one and buy it but to prepare it as well."

He snorted. "That's ridiculous. Why would it show you care more to give someone a gift that looks worse and took you longer?"

She gave a light sigh, got to her feet and stretched. "Are you going to be insufferable a lot longer?"

He smiled and angled his head. "Depends."

"On?"

"What you'll do to shut me up."

With a laugh she crossed the few steps to the chair and sank down on his lap. "Oh, I can think of a few ways…"

His chuckle brushed her lips and she inhaled it, swallowed it like a treasure to take out and savour later.

o.O.o

On Christmas Day, she steered to their spot after giving Ron the slip, claiming she had homework to catch up on. His protests that no one did homework on Christmas Day had been countered by Hermione who told him he had an Astronomy essay due the day he was back from the holidays. Then the bickering had started and she could leave unnoticed.

Walking through the castle, she enjoyed the lit candles, the scent of mulled wine in the air (only to be enjoyed by the staff and not the underaged students) and the dressed up portraits and suits of armour. Garlands hung from the banisters and mistletoes were trapping the unwary. The whole school was ready for Christmas.

Reaching the old teachers' lounge she found Draco already there. He was looking uncommonly uncomfortable. Usually he looked like any room he entered was his own, but today a vague tension in his shoulders spoke of unease.

"Hi."

"Hi."

He turned from the fireplace he'd been staring into.

"Merry Christmas," she smiled.

"Merry Christmas."

The room grew quiet and she wondered if something had happened.

"I got you something." Rummaging in her book bag, she pulled out the present, wrapped in green paper with red string.

"I...I got you something too."

They traded gifts, their smiles a little uncertain. This was new territory. Somewhere terribly close to something they hadn't put a name to yet that hung unspoken in the air around them.

Ginny looked down to see a package that looked as if someone had trampled it underfoot. Enough tape to make a new roll was plastered over the red paper. Her heart stilled in her chest, trembling on the edge of a precipice.

"Did you…" She looked up from the gift. "Did you wrap this yourself?"

He looked away, a vague color staining his cheekbones. His response was so quiet she couldn't hear it.

"Sorry?"

He turned back to look at her, an almost defiant glint in his eyes. "Yes, I did."

Then he had to take a step back to catch his balance when she launched herself on him. Ginny felt her heart stumbling the last tumultuous inch before it fell, landing at his feet. He wrapped his arms around her, relaxing slightly.

"It's the best Christmas gift ever. Thank you."

He chuckled, the sound soothing her as it travelled up her body. "You don't even know what it is."

"I don't have to." She pushed away just enough so she could look him in the eye. "And I like you too, Draco."

As they kissed, fresh snow started falling outside, and neither of them noticed. Their presents lay side by side on an armchair, forgotten in the face of the gift the two of them had just found in each other.

A/N: I hope you liked it, writing short things is not my strong suit so this was a challenge - but a fun one!


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